On Jan. 11, the Census 2010 Road Tour vehicle will be making stops in Somerville and Bound Brook to raise public awareness about the upcoming once-every-decade census count.
The Road Tour vehicle will be at the Bound Brook Borough Hall at 230 Hamilton St. from 11 a.m. to noon and at the Somerville Borough Hall at 25 West End Ave. from 2 to 3 p.m.
The Road Tour is a national operation that consists of 13 vehicles visiting numerous locations and affirming that census participation is safe, easy and important.
The target audiences are hard-to-count communities as well as the general public. The Road Tour launched Jan. 4 and will continue through April 2010. Its aim is to increase awareness and participation in 2010 Census as well as to increase census visibility and to increase response rates in hard-to-count communities.
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Every year, the federal government allocates more than $400 billion to states and communities based, in part, on census data.
Census data determine boundaries for state and local legislative and congressional districts. Census data also are used to determine locations for retail stores, schools, hospitals, new housing developments and other community facilities.
With only 10 questions, the 2010 Census questionnaire takes approximately 10 minutes to complete. Households are asked to provide key demographic information, including whether a housing unit is rented or owned; the address of the residence; and the names, genders, ages and races of those living in the household.
By law, the Census Bureau cannot share an individual’s responses with anyone, including other federal agencies and law enforcement.
For more information, go to www.2010Census.gov